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MAR VISTA HOUSE Los Angeles, California

This urban villa is comprised of three separate building components that define, and open to, a protected central exterior courtyard garden: a refuge in the middle of Los Angeles. The residence challenges notions of urban vs. suburban. While it is located in a large city, the design faces inward providing privacy, a peaceful environment and solitude.The main house is a two-story building containing all the living functions. Folded planes define the roof and walls and strategically placed windows frame views and perforate the building in a seemingly haphazard way but are intentionally located to maximize particular views, to allow light to penetrate the building and to access the exterior. A double-height volume articulates the main living area where an oversized fireplace extends beyond the roof plane. Low-cost, off-the-shelf materials are used in inventive ways to accommodate the budget. The assemblage of building materials adds depth, texture and scale to the building massing. These materials include galvanized metal siding with interlocking flat seams, cement fiberboard used in various proportions as siding, exposed steel, glass and wood. The lower level glazed walls are open to the courtyard and recessed for sun protection.The pool house and guest wing - a pair of modernist boxes - offer a restrained counterpoint to the main residence.These simple structures mirror each other at either end of the open outdoor space. A swimmers’ pool accentuates the axis and floats within the carpet of green landscape. The artist’s studio rests on pilotis and projects over the pool allowing space for a pool cabana below. Guest quarters are located atop the garage and accessed via a bridge that not only connects the second-story elements but also serves as the main entry of the property.The residence is an amalgamation of several disparate concepts: a tranquil space in the middle of a metropolis, off-the-shelf materials used in unusual ways and a suburban home in an urban location.